ALVA, Okla. — The “new” Arkansas Tech Wonder Boys controlled Northwestern Oklahoma State with a punishing ground game and kept the Rangers scoreless for the final 43 minutes en route to a 38-10 Great American Conference road victory Thursday night at Ranger Field.

ATU started its GAC season 1-0 for the first time and kept an opponent to 10 or fewer points for the first time since beating Incarnate Word 40-10 on Sept. 5, 2009. It was the first win for the Wonder Boys since last October and snapped a three-game losing skid.

It was also the first win for new head coach Raymond Monica, who watched Arkansas Tech take the lead for good late in the first quarter — and only looked back when the Wonder Boys threw ice-cold water on him to celebrate his first win at ATU.

The Rangers (0-1, 0-1) took the first lead of the game after a Kevin Ditch 25-yard field goal. But Arkansas Tech responded with a heavy dose of senior running back Casey Henderson, who got the Wonder Boys inside the 5-yard line. Freshman Justin Owens later took the direct snap and crossed the goal line.

Randy Velazquez of Dardanelle booted the point-after kick to give Arkansas Tech a 7-3 lead. Henderson scored on a 5-yard touchdown run a minute and a half into the second quarter, and the Wonder Boys led 14-3 after the Velazquez PAT.

Northwestern returned the kickoff 35 years, then got 15 more yards after an ATU penalty. Later, Reed Miller scrambled 26 yards for the Rangers’ first touchdown. Ditch’s PAT made it a 14-10 game with 12:51 left in the first half.

Starting at their own 18, the Wonder Boys got back-to-back 23-yard pass plays from senior quarterback Luke Halpin, who connected with Ketrich Harmon and Jonathan Keener.

After getting inside the 15, ATU went back to its short-yardage offensive package and Owens, who picked up consecutive first downs. Halpin then connected with John Simpson on a 13-yard touchdown pass. The Wonder Boys led 21-10 with 6:42 to go in the second quarter.

Arkansas Tech looked for more late in the first half, but were forced to settle for a Velazquez 34-yard field goal that gave the Wonder Boys a 24-10 halftime margin.

Halpin took it on the chin, literally, and had to leave the third quarter for a few plays. Preston Conder came in and the Rangers seemed to be hospitable, as they gave the Wonder Boys back-to-back chunks of 15 yards on personal foul penalties. Conder’s two passes into the end zone weren’t hauled in, however, and the score remained 24-10 after Velazquez missed a 32-yard field goal.

Wonder Boys senior tailback Ketrich Harmon scored on a 9-yard run right up the middle, and Velazquez made it 31-10 with 6:52 to go in the third quarter.

Halpin and Simpson combined for their second score of the game on a 13-yard touchdown strike. Velazquez set the final score at 38-10 with 1:41 remaining.

Two of the three teams picked atop the GAC standings in 2013 lost their season and league openers Thursday night. Southeastern Oklahoma State (1-0, 1-0) beat Southern Arkansas 56-50, and Southwestern Oklahoma State (1-0, 1-0) defeated Harding 27-23. The Bisons (0-1, 0-1) and Muleriders (0-1, 0-1) were picked by GAC coaches to battle Henderson State for the league crown.

The league-leading Wonder Boys return to Thone Stadium at Buerkle Field and will host Southwestern Oklahoma on Sept. 14. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.